JAPAN: Appointment in Peking

For the second time in eight months, China's aging leaders will gather this week at the now familiar willow-edged airport outside Peking to greet a traveler on a historic mission. Last February the U.S. President stepped out of Air Force One and totally changed the geopolitical shape of the world. This time the plane will be a Japan Air Lines jet carrying the leader of a country whose rivalry with China scarred Asia for the better part of the past century. The arrival of Japan's Premier Kakuei Tanaka in Peking, said China's Premier Chou En-lai last week, will mean...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!